Integration monitor is a daily Latvian press digest on ethnic minority and society integration issues. The Monitor reviews the biggest Latvian dailies: Diena, Latvijas Avize, Neatkariga (in Latvian language), Vesti Segodnya (in Russian language). In specific cases other information sources are used. Latvian Centre for Human Rights is not responsible for information published by the media.

• European Court of Human Rights has striken the application of the Sisojevs family out of the list of cases

Yesterday, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decided to strike the application of the former soviet militarist Arkadijs Sisojevs’ family out of its list of cases. The complainant believed that Latvia had violated the Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights by refusing to grant to them the status of permanent residents. The ECHR took the view that the problems that the applicants had experienced following the cancellation of their initial residence permits had stemmed to a large extent from their own actions. According to the Court, Sisojevs were informed that their conduct registering their residence in both Russia and Latvia without informing the relevant Latvian authorities was illegal. The former military of the Soviet army Arkadijs Sisojevs and his family arrived in Latvia in 1960ies and their two daughters were born in Latvia. After the re-established of Latvia’s independence, members of the Sisojevs family became stateless person and received the residence permit in Latvia. In 1995 the members of the Sisojev family were excluded form the permanent residents’ register when it became known that the complainants, who were using passports of the former USSR, had registered their residence also in Russia. The representative of the Latvian Government before International Human Rights Organisations Inga Reine believes that the Grand Chamber’s decision is very important since it reveals the shortcomings of the previous ECHR’s decision interfering into Latvia’s rights to decide on its residents’ status. Inga Reine has pointed to the fact that the state has explained to Sisojevs’ family how they could regularise their status already in 2003.

Yesterday, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decided to strike the application of the former soviet militarist Arkadijs Sisojevs family out of its list of cases. The complainant believed that Latvia had violated the Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights by refusing to grant to them the status of permanent residents. The ECHR took the view that the problems that the applicants had experienced following the cancellation of their initial residence permits had stemmed to a large extent from their own actions. According to the Court, Sisojevs were informed that their conduct registering their residence in both Russia and Latvia without informing the relevant Latvian authorities was illegal. The former military of the Soviet army Arkadijs Sisojevs and his family arrived in Latvia in 1960ies and their two daughters were born in Latvia. After the re-established of Latvias independence, members of the Sisojevs family became stateless person and received the residence permit in Latvia. In 1995 the members of the Sisojev family were excluded form the permanent residents register when it became known that the complainants, who were using passports of the former USSR, had registered their residence also in Russia. The representative of the Latvian Government before International Human Rights Organisations Inga Reine believes that the Grand Chambers decision is very important since it reveals the shortcomings of the previous ECHRs decision interfering into Latvias rights to decide on its residents status. Inga Reine has pointed to the fact that the state has explained to Sisojevs family how they could regularise their status already in 2003. Diena, Neatkariga Rita Avize, Latvijas Avize, Chas, Telegraf